Letter
from an Iraq veteranI am an ex soldier
who served during the 2003 gulf conflict. I had
a lot of fun in the British Army and have a lot
of good mates. I've served in various campaigns
(Falklands, NI, Iraq) but Iraq was last straw for
me. Luckily I was in my last 18 mths of service
and hung around to secure my pension after 22 years
- I think I was owed it. I would have thought seriously
about terminating if I had longer to do, a lot of
other blokes did sign off after returning from Iraq
after the conflict.
As
for the Yanks they were pants! 'All the gear - and
no idea!' was a well worn phrase. 'F*ck the Iraqis,
we're only here to kill people' was one choice phrase
I heard - and that came from a Yank Lt Col in the
MEF as he ordered M1A1 tanks to return fire when
engaged by small arms - Mei Lai - Vietnam?? No Umm
Qasr - Iraq. Winners never commit war crimes 'cos
nobody investigates them - he's lucky is all I can
say!
We, on the other hand were like paupers; no kit,
no money and obvious pawns of Dubya. When we arrived
in Jan 03 the politicos were still humming and hawing
about going to war. When we saw the amount of kit
the Yanks had shifted into Theatre it was obvious
to us all we were not coming back without a fight
- so the public face of Hoon, Blair and Straw was
a joke to us all.
We were briefed to expect a massive chemical onslaught
yet we had limited NBC supplies. The night before
we 'broke the berm' we were still not in receipt
of chemical medecine measures. Pathetic! Geoff Hoon
was not even there but continued to deny that we
were poorly equipped.
It rapidly became obvious, even when we crossed
'the line of death' that Saddam, complete twat that
he was mind you (and I didn't have a problem about
getting rid of him or his mob!) had no WMD and that
his much vaunted Republican Guard didn't fancy a
fight or, indeed, dying on his behalf.
We're still there, still dying and still Tony puts
on the 'we did what we had to do' rhetoric. I was
disgusted before we went and, everyday, am confronted
by blatant lies concerning our involvement. It makes
me sick! I'm just glad I'm not part of it any more.
Anon |
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Radio
5 Programme: Conscientious ObjectorsJonathan
Charles investigates opposition to the war in Iraq,
from the people who are fighting it.
Listen
to programme
Petition:
Demand the government re-instates the free postage
service to forces in Iraq.
Nearly
one in four soldiers wants to quit the army
Huge increase in number of attacks on UK troops
in Iraq this year: official
Read
transcript of Commons debate on Clause 8 of new
Armed Forces Bill, which could mean life imprisonment
for going AWOL
Government
accused of 'betraying UK troops' over votesThe
Government was today accused of "betrayal"
as it emerged that thousands of service personnel
in Iraq and Afghanistan were unable to vote...More>>
Mental
health crisis hits UK troopsThousands
of British troops have experienced serious mental
health problems following service in Iraq,
according to the most authoritative study ever undertaken
into the psychological impact of war on UK soldiers...More>>
HERCULES
SAFETY BBC
reports on how The deaths of 10 UK personnel in
Iraq in January 2005 could have been avoided if
a safety device was fitted to their Hercules.
Listen
to Radio 4 item
•
BBC News Online
•
"Blair helped kill my brother"
MORE MOD INJUSTICE James
Piotrowski is a British soldier who has been sentenced
to 7 years in prison for going AWOL on his return
from Iraq. He had been suffering from Post
Traumatic Stress.
The sentencing judge was Assistant Judge
Advocate Jack Bayliss - who presided over
the trial of Malcom Kendall-Smith.
The articles below highlight the case of James and
other soldiers suffering from mental health disorders.
Iraq
veterans suffer huge toll of mental health disordersMore
than 1,500 British soldiers have been diagnosed
with mental health disorders after serving in Iraq...More>>
Horrors
of War Haunt JamesEvery
time James Piotrowski closes his eyes he sees a
small Iraqi girl clinging to her father's dead body,
tears drawing lines down her dusty face...More>>
BROKEN
BY THE WAR MACHINEThese
are four mates who dreamed of joining the Army together.
But two years after serving in Basra they say they
are suffering from post-traumatic stress...More>>
Jailed
soldier 'failed by army'
British
troops in Iraq are afraid to open fire, secret MoD
report confirms
IRAN:Foreign Office lawyers warn: Support for Bush
military action would be illegal.
Army warns: we're too stretched to cope with any
more military action
Tory
MP urges Iraq troop pull-out
Families
of British troops pressure Blair - Boston Globe
Soldiers
families go on attack
Sister
to sue MoD over death of airman shot down in Iraq
Prisoner
of conscience: RAF doctor who refused Iraq service
is jailed
SAS
soldier faces legal action threat
MoD
to cut war widows' pensions if they sue over husbands'
deaths
Army
losing battle to fill infantry ranks
Time
to pull out of Iraq, voters tell Blair
Why
hero who lost limbs is not on minister's list of
Iraq war injured
18
Iraq war veterans committed suicide since 2003
Britain's
casualties of Iraq war total 6,700, MoD says
MOD
publishes information on British casualties online
MOD
letter reveals John Reid issued misleading figures
on British casualties in Iraq
YOUR
DEAD SON IS AWOL
Anger
in armed forces over Iraq
Soldiers going Awol have trebled since the invasion
of Iraq |
RAF
officer who refused to go to Iraq sentenced
to eight months imprisonment.